Dr. Veditantirige Eustace Reginold de Silva (later became Veditantirige Ediriweera Ranjitha Sarachchandra) (3 June 1914 – 16 August 1996; Sinhala: මහාචාර්ය එදිරිවීර සරච්චන්ද්‍ර), popularly as Ediriweera Sarachchandra, was a Sri Lankan playwright, novelist, poet, literary critic, essayist and social commentator. Considered as the premier playwright in Sri Lanka, Sarachchandra produced several critically acclaimed theater plays in a career spanned for more than four decades. He also served as a senior lecturer at the

University of Peradeniya The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a public university in Sri Lanka, funded by the University ...

for many years and as Sri Lankan Ambassador to France from 1974 to 1977.

Personal life

Sarachchandra was born on 3 June 1914 in Dodanduwa, Rathgama, Galle, Sri Lanka. He completed his early education at Richmond College in Galle, ,

St. John's College Panadura St John's College is a school in Panadura, Sri Lanka, that was founded in 1876. It is a National school with a student population of 2500 and staff of about 100. History St. John's College was initially known as 'Primary State English School' w ...

, S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia and St. Aloysius' College in Galle. In 1939 Sarachchandra married Aileen Beleth. Then he married Lalitha Swarna Perera, a children's drama producer. Sarachchandra was the father of five children: Nanaditha, Sunethra, Kisagothami, Yashodhara and Ransi. His daughter Sunethra is also a popular actress in cinema, television and theater who entered acting with his father's stage play ''Kapuwa Kapothii''. Her performance in ''Ves Muhunu'' made her the best actress. Since then, she has received several state awards.

Teaching career

Sarachchandra started his career as a teacher at St. Peter's College in Colombo 4. He then joined the publishing company Lake House in an administrative position. 1933, gained admission to the Ceylon University College and offered Pali, Sanskrit and Sinhala for the first degree and passed out in 1936 with a first class and sat for the Ceylon Civil Service examination (because of his parents insistence) and came first in the islan

He subsequently travelled to

Santiniketan Santiniketan is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, and later expanded by hi ...

to study

Indian philosophy Indian philosophy refers to philosophical traditions of the Indian subcontinent. A traditional Hindu classification divides āstika and nāstika schools of philosophy, depending on one of three alternate criteria: whether it believes the Veda ...

and Music. Sarachchandra returned to Sri Lanka in 1940 and resumed his teaching career at St. Thomas College in Mt. Lavinia. From 1942 to 1944 he worked on his master's degree in Indian philosophy as an external student of the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

while holding the position of Sub-Editor of the Sinhala Dictionary. Sarachchandra returned to the

University of Ceylon The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Unive ...

serving as a lecturer in

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

from 1947 to 1949. He gained entry to the

in 1949 to study towards a post graduate degree in

Western Philosophy Western philosophy encompasses the philosophy, philosophical thought and work of the Western world. Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of Western culture, beginning with the ancient Greek philosophy of the Pre-Socratic p ...

Career

Sarachchandra entered the drama around 1940 as a playwright who followed the Western natural drama tradition. For the next ten years or so, he was involved in Western natural drama adapted into Sinhala. During that time, he made the stage plays ''Mudalalige Peraliya'' (1943), ''Kapuwa Kapoti'' (1945), ''Hangi Hora'' (1949), ''Valaha'', ''Magul Prasthava'' and ''Manager'' (1950) which were adaptive natural dramas produced by him. In 1951, he produced the play ''Bahina Kalawa'' which was his first naturalistic creation. Then he made three independent, natural short plays: ''Vala Ihagena Kema'', ''Tharuna Lekakaya'' and ''Sathwa Karunawa''. In 1955, he made his longest natural drama ''Wadinna Giya Devale'', which is a semi-natural drama with two songs based on a golden folk tale. Sarachchandra's concept of drama had undergone a major transformation since the early 1950s. In 1952, he produced a semi-natural semi-stylized play ''Pabawathi'' which was the first step he took to create a local drama tradition. It was the first time that his play has included "Pothe Gura" and songs. Later, he had the opportunity to study in Eastern countries such as India and Japan. After returning, he produced his first stylist play ''Maname'' in 1956 to widespread acclaim. Maname is generally considered the first real Sinhala drama, signalling the transition from the ''Nadagam'' or folk drama to the modern theatrical drama format. After the successful venture, he continued as a playwright, developing his next stylist play ''Sinhabahu'' in 1961, which is widely considered as his best work. Based on the Nadagam tradition, he produced only these two plays. After those critically acclaimed plays, he made several beyond 'Nadagam' tradition dramas including: ''Kada Walalu'' (1958), ''Elova Gihin Melova Ava'' (1959), ''Hasthikantha Manthare'' (1959), ''Mahasara'' (1968), ''Prematho Jayathi Soko'' (1969), ''Wesasanthara Natakaya'' (1980), ''Lomahansa Natakaya'' (1958), ''Bhava Kadathurava'' (1988). Most of his plays were adaptations from

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

''Jathakas'' or Sinhala folklore giving his work instant and lasting popularity with the population that identified with their roots. He followed a stylistic tradition that included singing, playing and dancing in these stage plays. Composed and first produced in 1969, the lyric drama ''Pematho Jayathi Soko'' was based on the classic poetry "Swarnathilaka" included in "Saddharmalankaraya". It was first presented by the Sinhala Drama Board of the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya and was staged for a week from February 25, 1969 to March 2, 1969 at 8 pm at the Sukhawathie Theater (EOE Perera Theater) in the Engineering Department of the University. The

University of Jaffna The University of Jaffna ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாணப் பல்கலைக்கழகம், translit=Yāḻppāṇap Palkalaikkaḻakam; si, යාපනය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ''Yāpanaya Viśvavidyālaya''; ...

and the

conferred Sarachchandra the degree of Doctor of Literature in 1982. Also in that year he was made an Emeritus Professor at the University of Peradeniya. In 1983 the State of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Ca ...

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union terr ...

awarded Sarachchandra the Kumaran Asan World Prize. In 1988 he won the

Ramon Magsaysay Award The Ramon Magsaysay Award ( Filipino: ''Gawad Ramon Magsaysay'') is an annual award established to perpetuate former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay's example of integrity in governance, courageous service to the people, and pragmatic ideal ...

for Literature. On 3 June 2014, Sarachchandra's birth centenary falls which has been recognized by UNESCO. With that, he became the first and only Sri Lankan artist to be recognized by UNESCO.

Stage plays

*''Bahina Kalawa'' *''Bhavakaḍaturāwa'' *'' Elowa gihin Melowa Āwā'' *''Kada Walalu'' *''Kirimuttiya Gangea Giya'' – 1985 *''Lomahansa'' *''Mahasara'' *'' Maname'' *''Mudalalige Peraliya'' *''Pabāvatī'' *''Pematho Jayathi Soko'' *''Raththaran'' *'' Sinhabāhu'' *''Wessantara''

Author works

Novels

*''Malagiya Eththo'' (1959) *''Walmath Wee Hasarak Nudutimi'' (1962) *''Malwunge Awrudhuda'' (1965) *''Loku Putha Nohoth Bandulage Parawarthaya'' (1971) *''Heta Echchara Kaluwara Ne'' (1975) *''Wilasiniyakage Premaya'' (1988) *''Curfew and a Full Moon'' (1978) *''With the Begging Bowl'' (1986) *''Foam Upon the Stream'' (1987)

Short Stories

*''Kalayage Awemen'' (1969) *''Maya Roopaya'' (1974) *''Roopa Sundari'' (1984) *''Midiya, Gruhaniya ha Upasikawa'' (1993) *''Of a Queen and a Courtesan'' (1970) *''The Death of a Friend'' (1981)

Research, Literary Theory and Criticism

*Sahithya Vidyawa (1949) *Sinhala Nawakatha Ithihasaya ha Wicharaya (1951) *Kalpana Lokaya (1958) *Natya Gaweshana (1967) *Wes Muhunuda Sebe Muhunuda? (1971) *Modern Sinhalese Fiction (1943) *The Sinhalese Novel (1950) *The folk Drama of Ceylon (1952) *Buddhist Psychology of Perception (1958)

Other

*''Ape Withthi'' (1942) *''Asampurna Charika Satahan'' (1967) *''Dharmishta Samajaya'' (1982) *''Pin Ethi Sarasawi Waramak Denne'' (1985)

References

External links

Sarachchandra Org
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070929092341/http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl1604/16040710.htm SYMPOSIUM: SRI LANKA'S CULTURAL EXPERIENCE Between Home and the Worldbr>Sarachchandra the diplomat – a few recollections Integral dramatist, doyen among intellectualsසරච්චන්ද්‍ර හිටියානම් අද මොනවා කියයිද?
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sarachchandra, Ediriweera 1914 births 1996 deaths Sinhalese academics Sri Lankan dramatists and playwrights Sri Lankan novelists Alumni of University of London Worldwide Alumni of the University of London Alumni of the Ceylon University College Alumni of Richmond College, Galle Alumni of St. Aloysius' College, Galle Alumni of St. John's College, Panadura Alumni of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia Academics of the University of Ceylon (Colombo) Academics of the University of Ceylon (Peradeniya) Ambassadors of Sri Lanka to France Sinhala-language poets Sinhalese writers People from Galle 20th-century novelists 20th-century poets 20th-century dramatists and playwrights Academics Academics Academia in Sri Lanka Sri Lankan academics Academics from Galle